today newspaper US launches new $100 banknote

Bombs in Baghdad, other Iraq attacks kill 45 Posted: BAGHDAD (AP) - A string of attacks across Iraq, including a coordinated wave of evening bombings in Baghdad, killed at least 45 people Monday as al-Qaida claimed responsibility for a recent spate of rare suicide attacks in the relatively peaceful Kurdish north.Mondays bombings marked the third day in a row that insurgents were able to unleash attacks powerful enough to claim fatalities numbering in the dozens. The mounting bloodshed is heightening worries that the country is returning to the widespread sectarian killing that marked the years following the 2003 U.S.-led invasion.A rapid-fire wave of bombings that rocked the Iraqi capital shortly after nightfall struck at least eight different neighborhoods, according to police officials, who provided casualty tolls. The force of one powerful blast, a car bomb explosion in the Bab al-Sharji neighborhood that killed four and wounded 11, rattled windows in central Baghdad.More than 5,000 people have been killed since violent attacks began accelerating in April, including more than 50 Shiite pilgrims slain in a Baghdad suicide bombing Saturday and 12 children killed the following day when a vehicle packed with explosives blew up next to their school in the north of the country.Amnesty International condemned the recent spate of killings as a deplorable turn in the current surge in violence.These latest attacks are war crimes and are part of a widespread attack against civilians in Iraq that amounts to crimes against humanity, said Hassiba Hadj Sahraoui, the groups program director for the Middle East.Mondays deadliest attack happened when a car bomb and roadside bomb exploded in a market and nearby parking lot in the northern Shiite district of Husseiniya, killing seven and wounding 21.Car bombs also hit the mainly Shiite neighborhoods of Zafaraniyah, with four killed and 11 wounded, Alam, with two dead and 10 wounded, Obeidi, with five killed and eight wounded. Another bomb exploded outside a Zafaraniyah coffee shop later in the evening, killing three and wounding 10.Confessionally mixed neighborhoods were also hit. A roadside bomb hit a commercial street in Kam Sarah, killing three and wounding eight, and the eastern Baghdad al-Jadidah, killing five and wounding 14.Another car bomb exploded in shopping streets in the mainly Sunni neighborhood of Dora, killing four and wounding eight, and in the mostly Sunni area of Sadiyah, killing three and wounding 10.Earlier on Monday, bombs targeting patrols of pro-government, anti-al-Qaida Sunni militia members outside Baghdad killed five and wounded 10, police said. The militiamen are a frequent target for al-Qaida, which considers them traitors.Hospital officials confirmed the casualties. The authorities spoke on condition of anonymity because they werent authorized to brief reporters.There was no immediate claim of responsibility, but coordinated bomb blasts in civilian areas are a frequent tactic by al-Qaidas Iraq arm.Earlier, al-Qaida claimed responsibility for rare suicide attacks last month in the relatively peaceful self-ruled Kurdish region, underlining the terror groups growing strength across the country.The Sept. 29 twin suicide car bombs hit a complex housing the regional Interior Ministry and other security agencies in Irbil, the capital of the Kurdish region, killing at least six Kurdish troops and wounding more than 30 others. The attacks were the biggest in the Kurdish region since 2007, when a suicide truck bombing hit the same ministry, killing 14.

Attacks after deadly Egypt demos shatter relative calm Posted: CAIRO (AFP) - Suspected militants killed nine people in attacks in Egypt on Monday, a day after clashes between Islamists and police left dozens dead and dashed hopes of restored calm after president Mohamed Morsis ouster.In south Sinai, a car bomb explosion outside provincial police headquarters killed three policemen, the interior ministry said, and gunmen shot dead six soldiers near the Suez Canal city of Ismailiya.The attacks came a day after Islamists, hoping to galvanise their flagging protest movement, clashed with police as they tried to march on a Cairo square steeped in symbolism.Assailants firing rocket-propelled grenades on Monday also damaged a satellite communication dish in Cairo that routes international calls, police said.Before dawn on Monday, unidentified gunmen also exchanged fire with soldiers near the Giza pyramids for nearly half an hour, with no casualties reported, a security official said.At least 51 people were killed the previous day in clashes, mostly in Cairo, in the worst violence in Egypt since mid-August when police dispersed two Islamist protest camps.Police, joined by civilians opposed to the Islamists, fired tear gas and shots at the protesters when they tried to reach Tahrir Square in central Cairo.Police say the Islamist protesters used firearms in the clashes.The renewed violence appeared aimed at frustrating plans by the military-installed government to move ahead three months after the army toppled Morsi.With its economy propped up by aid from Arab Gulf countries, the interim government has sought to persuade investors and tourists to return to the country.Since Morsis overthrow and detention, police have arrested more than 2,000 of his Islamist supporters and the military has sought to quell a wave of militant attacks in north Sinai.But after weeks of relative calm, the violence in the past 48 hours in the capital and south Sinai, which is dotted with tourist resorts, has shattered the appearance of restored security.The Islamist coalition behind Sundays protests has called for further protests on Friday to converge on the same square, Tahrir, in central Cairo.No one will prevent us from going there, regardless of the sacrifices, the Anti-Coup Alliance said late Sunday.The square, where the military had held celebrations on Sunday to mark 40 years since the Arab-Israeli war, is highly symbolic for both supporters and opponents of Morsi.Hundreds of thousands of people had filled the square in February 2011 to force president Hosni Mubarak to resign, and again last June and July to urge the army to depose his successor Morsi.

Four million more set to flee Syrian conflict: UN Posted: GENEVA (AFP) - Four million more Syrians will be forced to flee their homes in 2014 as the conflict there escalates, the United Nations has predicted.Two million will leave Syria as refugees, while the other 2.25 million will be displaced within Syria, according to a UN document seen by AFP Monday.The conflict has already forced more than two million Syrians to flee, in a tide of humanity that has overwhelmed neighbouring countries. Millions more have been displaced inside Syria.Current estimates are that around 3.2 million Syrians will have become refugees by the end of this year in what Antonio Guterres, the United NationsHigh Commissioner for Refugees, has described as a disgraceful humanitarian calamity.The forecasts followed a meeting last month between humanitarian organisations and the UNs Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) in Amman.OCHA said at the meeting that an escalation of the conflict with the disruption of essential services and a further erosion of support mechanisms was the most likely scenario for 2014, and warned of an increase in the threat to humanitarian workers.The UN estimates that 8.3 million Syrians will need aid next year, putting further strain on already stretched resources.

Karzai says NATO mission caused 'suffering' for no gain Posted: LONDON (AFP) - Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Monday condemned the NATO mission in his country for causing a lot of suffering without delivering any gains.The outgoing leader also suggested to the BBC that he might not sign a bilateral security deal wanted by United States.On the security front the entire NATO exercise was one that caused Afghanistan a lot of suffering, a lot of loss of life, and no gains because the country is not secure, he told Yalda Hakim of BBC World News.What we wanted was absolute security and a clear-cut war against terrorism.Karzai revealed that he had a very good relationship with former US president George W. Bush until 2005, when civilian casualties began to mount.Turning to the US security deal, which would detail the two countries relationship beyond the planned NATO withdrawal in 2014, Karzai played down hopes of imminent agreement.If it doesnt suit us and if it doesnt suit them then, naturally we will go separate ways, he explained.If this agreement does not provide Afghanistan peace and security the Afghans will not want it.The US hopes that a deal can be agreed before elections for Karzais successor in six months time.The president said the government was negotiating with the hardline Taliban, adding they will be welcome to participate in elections.Where its the Afghan people appointing people through elections to state organs then the Taliban should come and participate in elections, said Karzai.He insisted that the return of the Taliban will not undermine progress on womens rights.Tens of thousands of civilians have been killed in Afghanistan since the Taliban launched their insurgency in 2001 after being ousted in a US-led invasion.Violence has increased as NATO troops wind down operations and Afghan security forces take charge of security responsibility countrywide.More than 1,000 civilians were killed and around 2,000 injured in the first half of 2013, according to a UN report, a 23 percent increase from the same period last year.Peace efforts to contain the insurgency have so far failed to yield results.

2 Americans, German-American win Nobel in medicine Posted: NEW YORK (AP) Two Americans and a German-American won the Nobel Prize in medicine Monday for illuminating how tiny bubbles inside cells shuttle key substances around like a vast and highly efficient fleet of vans, delivering the right cargo to the right place at the right time.Scientists believe the research could someday lead to new medicines for epilepsy, diabetes and other conditions.The work has already helped doctors diagnose a severe form of epilepsy and immune deficiency diseases in children. It has also aided research into the brain and many neurological diseases, and opened the door for biotech companies to make yeast pump out large quantities of useful proteins like insulin.The $1.2 million prize will be shared by James Rothman, 62, of Yale University, Randy Schekman, 64, of the University of California, Berkeley, and Dr. Thomas Sudhof, 57, of Stanford University.They unlocked the mysteries of the cells internal transport system, which relies on bubble-like structures called vesicles to deliver substances the cell needs. The fleet of vesicles is sort of the FedEx of the cellular world.When a pancreas cell releases insulin or one brain cell sends out a chemical messenger to talk to a neighboring one, for example, the vesicles have to deliver those substances to the right places on the cell surface. They also ferry cargo between different parts of a cell.Imagine hundreds of thousands of people who are traveling around hundreds of miles of streets; how are they going to find the right way? Where will the bus stop and open its doors so that people can get out? Nobel committee secretary Goran Hansson said. There are similar problems in the cell.Jeremy Berg, former director of the National Institute of General Medical Sciences in Bethesda, Md., said the prize was long overdue and widely expected because the work was so fundamental and has driven so much other research.Berg, who now directs the Institute for Personalized Medicine at the University of Pittsburgh, said the work provided the intellectual framework that scientists use to study how brain cells communicate and how other cells release hormones.So the work has indirectly affected research into virtually all neurological disease as well as other diseases, he said.In the 1970s, Schekman discovered a set of genes that were required for vesicle transport. Rothman revealed in the 1980s and 90s how vesicles delivered their cargo to the right places. Also in the 90s, Sudhof identified the machinery that controls when vesicles release chemical messengers from one brain cell that let it communicate with another.This is not an overnight thing. Most of it has been accomplished and developed over many years, if not decades, Rothman said.Rothman said he lost grant money for the work recognized by the Nobel committee, but he will now reapply, hoping the prize will make a difference in receiving funding.Schekman said he was awakened at 1 a.m. at his home in California by the chairman of the prize committee, just as he was suffering from jetlag after returning from a trip to Germany the night before.I wasnt thinking too straight. I didnt have anything elegant to say, he told The Associated Press. All I could say was Oh, my God, and that was that.He called the prize a wonderful acknowledgment of the work he and his students had done. I called my lab manager and I told him to go buy a couple bottles of Champagne and expect to have a celebration with my lab, he said.Sudhof, who was born in Germany but moved to the U.S. in 1983 and also has American citizenship, told the AP he received the call from the committee while driving in Spain, where he was due to give a talk.And like a good citizen I pulled over and picked up the phone, he said. To be honest, I thought at first it was a joke. I have a lot of friends who might play these kinds of tricks.I was stunned and I was literally speechless, Sudhof later told reporters.The medicine prize kicked off this years Nobel announcements. The awards in physics, chemistry, literature, peace and economics will be announced this week and next. Each prize is worth 8 million Swedish kronor ($1.2 million).Rothman and Schekman won the Albert Lasker Basic Medical Research Award for their research in 2002 an award often seen as a precursor of a Nobel Prize. Sudhof won a Lasker last month.Established by Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, the Nobel Prizes have been handed out since 1901.Last years Nobel in medicine went to Britains John Gurdon and Japans Shinya Yamanaka for their contributions to stem cell science.

IOC gives Pakistan deadline to curb interference Posted: LAUSANNE (AP) - The IOC says it set a Dec. 1 deadline for Pakistan to show that its Olympic committee and sports federations are being run without interference from the national government.Pakistan has been facing possible suspension from the Olympic movement under IOC rules which guarantee the independence of elected sports officials.A meeting at IOC headquarters was called to address allegations that parallel bodies have been established to rival officially recognized sports federations.The IOC says government authorities pledged that they will cooperate and refrain from any undue intervention.The IOC says it hopes that mutual understanding and a productive relationship can now be established.

Federer chasing ATP finals spot in Shanghai Posted: SHANGHAI (AP) - Roger Federer is in an unfamiliar position as the tennis season winds down still fighting to secure a spot in the eight-man field at the ATP World Tour Finals in London.Over the last decade, Federer usually had his spot in the season-ending tournament wrapped up months in advance. Now hes in the seventh spot coming into this weeks Shanghai Masters, needing to put distance between himself and his nearest rivals, Stanislas Wawrinka and Richard Gasquet.Federer hasnt missed the tournament since his first appearance in 2002, winning it six times.Its part of my goals for the end of the season, its definitely a driving force behind me playing Shanghai, Basel and Paris now, Federer said. Im not just playing the tournaments trying to win it, but Im also playing trying to qualify for the World Tour Finals. It kind of goes hand-in-hand.Shanghai is Federers first tournament since his fourth-round loss at the U.S. Open, which came on the heels of a second-round exit at Wimbledon. In what has been a disappointing year for the 17-time Grand Slam champion, questions about his form have become common place at news conferences. He bristled a bit Monday when asked about the possibility of missing the ATP finals, and how much that was weighing on his mind.Depends how much I will get asked about it, honestly, Federer said. If you dont ask me, I wont think about it so much. The more you ask me, the more you think about it, the more Im clearly aware of exactly what needs to happen.He looked more relaxed on the tennis court, where he teamed with Chinas top player Zhang Ze in the doubles tournament, winning 6-2, 6-1 over Kevin Anderson of South Africa and Dmitry Tursunov of Russia.Federer rarely plays doubles, but said he hoped his partnership with Zhang would help give Chinese tennis a boost.I thought this year if I play doubles, it needs to be something different, something special, he said. When I arrived here (and) they announced we were going to play doubles together, there was huge excitement. They were going to put us on center court on Monday. I thought, thats great, thats good for the game, good for tennis here in China.They only needed 46 minutes to win their first match together, and after Zhang sealed the victory with an overhead smash, Federer heaped praise on his partner in the on-court interview.I thought he was the player of the match. I truly believe that, he told the crowd.He then got a big laugh when the announcer asked him to repeat a Chinese phrase: Wo geng shuai le, or Im more handsome. He quickly demurred when told what he said, adding, No, still not.Perhaps a little fun on the court is just what Federer needs as he tries to build some momentum ahead of what he hopes will be a more successful 2014.My mindset now is, OK, next year is going to be a great year again where Im not going to have that many points to defend, he said. I feel like I also need the end of this year to prepare for 14 because it has been a bit of a rocky patch the last couple of months. But my expectations will always remain very high. That will never change.

Beckham's endorsement income rises to $26 million Posted: LONDON (AP) - David Beckham earned more than $26 million from personal sponsorship deals in his final full year as a footballer.The former England captain retired from playing in May after five months at Paris Saint-Germain, having left Major League Soccer in December 2012 following more than five years at the Los Angeles Galaxy.The latest accounts for Beckhams company, Footwork Productions, showed that turnover rose in 2012 by 10 percent to 16.5 million pounds ($26.6 million).During 2012, Beckham was highly visible at the London Olympics, both in the opening ceremony and with his Samsung sponsorship.The accounts show the 38-year-old former Manchester United and Real Madrid player received a salary of 14.1 million pounds ($22.7 million) from his company.The accounts dont include Beckhams $4 million salary from the Galaxy.

East Asian Games: China takes early medals lead Posted: BEIJING (AFP) - Hosts China took an early lead in the medals table on the opening day of the East Asian Games on Monday, winning 22 of the first 40 golds awarded.Chinese athletes triumphed in events including shooting disciplines, taekwondo contests, diving, weightlifting, and the mens hammer at the quadrennial multi-sport event, being held in the northern port of Tianjin.China also had 13 silver and nine bronze medals by the end of Monday.Japan was in second place, with six golds, seven silvers and 12 bronzes, just ahead of South Korea on four golds, 11 silvers and 11 bronzes.Taiwan was in fourth, with four golds, three silvers, and four bronzes.The first gold to be awarded went to Japanese distance runner Riko Matsuzaki, 20, who won the womens 5,000m race in 16 minutes 9.72 seconds.North Koreas Kim Chun-Mi came a distant second in 16 minutes 35.79 seconds, and Chinas Fu Tinglian took bronze with 16 minutes 40.52 seconds.The East Asian Games are a contest between athletes from China, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Mongolia, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau and Guam.More than 2,400 athletes are taking part in the games, competing in 24 different sports, according to Xinhua, the Chinese state news agency.Among the stars expected to appear is Chinas 17-year-old swimmer Ye Shiwen, who claimed two gold medals at the 2012 London Olympics but delivered a disappointing performance at Julys World Championships in Barcelona, where she failed to medal.But several other top Chinese athletes, including swimmer Sun Yang and badminton player Lin Dan, will be absent.Rising sprinter Zhang Peimeng, who recently broke Chinas 100m and 200m national records, is expected to only run in the mens 4x100m relay.More than 1,500 performers took part in Sundays opening ceremony at Tianjin Gymnasium, which state media described as frugal but splendid.In a move apparently aimed at underscoring Chinas recent campaign to crack down on government spending, the scaled-back event did not include a fireworks display, Xinhua said.It is the last time the East Asian Games will be held in their current form, Xinhua reported, with the event due to be transformed into a youth games for athletes aged 14 to 18.

Cycling: Evans unlikely to ride 2014 Tour de France Posted: MILAN (AFP) - Former Tour de France champion Cadel Evans said he is unlikely to compete at the 2014 edition of the race as he concentrates on targetting a win in the Giro dItalia.Its unlikely that Ill start the Tour de France, Evans told AFP Monday following the presentation of the three-week Italian epic, which begins on May 9 in Belfast and ends on June 1 in the Trieste region of Italy.Evans, who was among the Tour de Frances oldest champions when he won the fabled yellow jersey at the age of 34 in 2011, produced an impressive performance in this years Giro dItalia.Despite having only several weeks of preparation following a late call-up by his BMC team, the 36-year-old was only pipped for a runner-up place by Rigoberto Uran in the final stages when Italian Vincenzo Nibali triumphed.Evans went on to double up at the Tour de France barely a month later, but finished far off the podium as Britains Chris Froome won his maiden yellow jersey.Evans, who came to the cycling worlds attention in 2002 when he almost won the Giro dItalia on his debut, admits he has unfinished business at the race.His absence from the Tour de France is a move he feels would boost his chances at finally claiming the races pink jersey.Its not 100 percent confirmed, but at this point it looks like Ill probably do the Giro, Evans added.Its unlikely that Ill start in the Tour de France, and that leaves me with a lot of time and energy to concentrate on the Giro.

Get richer, die younger: study Posted: PARIS (AFP) - We all live longer when times are good, right?Not so, according to a new study which says that in developed countries, the elderly have a higher mortality rate when the economy goes into higher gear.Even its authors are baffled by the outcome.The finding was highly unexpected, Herbert Rolden from the Leyden Academy on Vitality and Ageing in the Netherlands, told AFP.In the long term, economic prosperity is credited with lower mortality rates across all age groups -- largely due to a drop in old-age mortality.But the picture changes when you look at short-term economic fluctuations, according to the study which appears in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health.For every rise of one percentage point in a countrys gross domestic product, mortality among 70-74-year-old men rose by 0.36 percent and for women of the same age by 0.18 percent, it found.Among 40-45-year-olds, the corresponding rise was 0.38 percent for men and 0.16 for women.The study analysed mortality and economic growth figures from 1950 to 2008 in 19 developed countries -- Australia, Japan, New Zealand, the United States and several in Europe.Since many developed countries are currently in a recession, one could expect that this has a dampening effect on old age survival, says the study.However, it has been found that annual increases in unemployment, or decreases in gross domestic product (GDP) are associated with LOWER mortality rates.A similar, seemingly counterintuitive trend had already been found in younger people.That had been ascribed to more work stress and traffic accidents due to higher employment in economic boom times.But such factors are unlikely to hold true for older, retired people, said Rolden.We are still in the dark on what really explains the association, he admitted.The cause may lie in a change in social structure, with younger relatives and friends working longer and having less time to care for the elderly, according to one, untested, theory.Another idea pins the blame on air pollution, which increases during economic expansion and is likelier to have more of an effect on frail people.The team call for more research. Unravelling the mystery could have many benefits, they say.

Oil falls to $103 as US debt deadline nears Posted: NEW YORK (AP) - The price of oil fell to $103 a barrel Monday as a partial U.S. government shutdown entered a second week and crude production in the Gulf of Mexico got back on track after a storm system passed through.Benchmark crude for November delivery dropped 81 cents to close at $103.03 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.The U.S. has been forced to curtail government operations after a politically divided Congress failed to approve a short-term funding measure to allow the nation to pay its bills past the end of its fiscal year on Sept. 30. As a result, 800,000 federal workers were furloughed and scores of nonessential services were halted. Prices were under pressure since energy would be needed less in a prolonged halt to government activities.Now, Congress faces another deadline that could prove highly damaging to the U.S. economy if missed. The United States's debt ceiling, also known as its borrowing limit, must legally be raised before Oct. 17. The U.S. Treasury estimates it will have $30 billion of cash on hand on that day, but the money will be exhausted quickly government bills can run as high as $60 billion on a single day.That means the government could default on its obligations to service its debt which could lead to the first-ever default on government debt.Oil production, meanwhile, was returning to normal in the Gulf of Mexico, where late last week several companies took precautionary measures as Tropical Storm Karen approached. The storm dissipated without causing major damage.Brent, the benchmark for international crudes, rose 22 cents to $109.68 on the ICE Futures exchange in London.

Dollar drops as US budget impasse continues Posted: NEW YORK CITY (AFP) - The dollar Monday fell against major currencies as the US budget fight dragged on with no sign of progress.Near 2100 GMT, the euro traded at $1.3579 compared with $1.3557 Friday.The dollar also sank against the yen, buying 96.68 of the Japanese currency compared with 97.46.The euro fell against the yen, trading at 131.30 yen from 132.13.Democratic and Republican leaders gave no ground over the weekend or on Monday as the partial US government shutdown edged into its second week.Analysts are especially concerned that the impasse could lead to a similar paralysis ahead of the October 17 deadline to raise the debt ceiling,with potentially devastating economic consequences.Dollar sentiment has been in retreat mode for a while amid concerns that political brinkmanship in Washington could hurt American growth during the final quarter of the year and keep the Fed from slowing stimulus, said Joe Manimbo, senior market analyst at Western Union Business Solutions.However, Manimbo said the dollar could actually strengthen with an escalation of US market anxiety because of the greenbacks standing as an elite safe haven.Similarly, Christopher Vecchio, a currency analyst at DailyFX, said the dollar, as a safe haven, should advance if the October 17 deadline creeps forward without any tangible resolution in sight.But Vecchio said the dollar would likely trade at a discount to other safe havens, such as the Japanese yen and the Swiss franc.The British pound rose to $1.6093 from $1.6005 Friday.The dollar dropped to 0.9028 Swiss franc from 0.9071.

US launches new $100 banknote Posted: WASHINGTON (AFP) - The United States launches on Tuesday a new $100 bill that comes with, for the iconic greenback, a new touch of color, as well as special features to foil counterfeiters.In its first remake since 1969, the $100 banknote, which takes a key role in cash transactions worldwide, sports the traditional portrait of statesman Benjamin Franklin, a leader of the American Revolution, on the front and a picture of Philadelphias Independence Hall on the back.But it adds a yellowish 100 in one corner and, next to Franklin, a tan quill and bronze-colored inkwell that holds inside it the Philadelphia Liberty Bell in changing colors from darker brown to green, depending on the angle the note is held.Cutting vertically through the middle of the banknote is a blue security ribbon that shows 100 and smaller Liberty Bells in darker blue, which appear to move as the note is shifted.The new design comes primarily to fight the increasing sophistication of counterfeiters, Sonja Danburg, program manager in charge of currency education at the Federal Reserve, told AFP.Its our most global bank note. Between a half and two-thirds of them are circulating outside of the United States, and its also the most counterfeited of US denominations outside of the United States, she said.We want to stay ahead of counterfeiting threats, we want to protect the public.The new note hits the streets in the United States on Tuesday, and it will take some days before banks ship them to branches and counterparts around the world.With some $900 billion of them still out on the market, and mostly abroad, Danburg stressed, the old $100 note will continue to be honored, with no time limit.

Struggling Bangladesh, Kiwis seek redemption Posted: CHITTAGONG (AFP) - Test crickets under-achievers New Zealand and Bangladesh will strive to resurrect their fortunes after a dismal run when they open a two-match series in Chittagong on Wednesday.Bangladesh are tottering at the bottom of the Test table, lower than fellow wooden-spooners Zimbabwe, after losing eight of their last 11 matches and with just one win in the last three years.New Zealand are ranked just above Zimbabwe and Bangladesh in eighth place, having suffered 10 defeats in their last 16 Tests. Their lone win in this period came against Sri Lanka in Colombo in November 2012.Skipper Brendon McCullum and coach Mike Hesson will hope to build on New Zealands overwhelming unbeaten record against Bangladesh, having won eight of nine Tests so far and drawn one.This will be New Zealands first Test series in Bangladesh since 2008, when they won 1-0 following a hard-fought three-wicket victory in Chittagong after being set a fourth-innings target of 317.Inspirational all-rounder Daniel Vettori, who scored a match-winning 76 in that game, is absent this time after undergoing surgery on a troublesome Achilles tendon.The Black Caps, who will also be without batsman Martin Guptill and seamer Tim Southee, have called up uncapped leg-spinner Ish Sodhi and all-rounder Corey Anderson for the series.The tourists preparations for the first Test have been hampered by bad weather, which forced their lone three-day practice match in Chittagong to be abandoned without a ball being bowled.Rain has been forecast for the entire week, leaving the ground staff at the Zahur Ahmed Chowdhury stadium worried as they prepare for the first competitive game on the newly-laid surface since the pitch was dug up in 2011.Former New Zealand tearaway Shane Bond, the current fast bowling coach for the tourists, was confident his seamers will perform well despite the traditionally slow Bangladesh wickets.Even though the wickets here are low and slow, history suggests that the quick bowlers have done well against Bangladesh, said Bond. Its going to be hard work and its going to be hot and humid, but our bowlers are willing to bend their backs.The hosts have recalled left-arm spinner Abdur Razzak after a two-year absence at Test level, and also brought back batsman Anamul Haque, 20, who missed the previous series in Zimbabwe due to college exams.Bangladesh have also included rookie all-rounder Marshall Ayub, 24, and seamer Al-Amin Hossain, 23, in their squad following the duos consistent performances in domestic cricket.Bangladesh (from): Mushfiqur Rahim (capt), Mohammad Mahmudullah, Anamul Haque, Tamim Iqbal, Shakib Al Hasan, Nasir Hossain, Abdur Razzak, Naeem Islam, Sohag Gazi, Rubel Hossain, Mominul Haque, Marshall Ayub, Robiul Islam, Al-Amin Hossain.New Zealand (from): Brendon McCullum (capt), Peter Fulton, Hamish Rutherford, Kane Williamson, Ross Taylor, Dean Brownlie, BJ Watling, Tom Latham, Corey Anderson, Doug Bracewell, Neil Wagner, Trent Boult, Mark Gillespie, Ish Sodhi, Bruce Martin.